Elvis in Ohio (1955-1977)

Starting with a listing of shows Elvis did in Cleveland and Richfield and having a request for certain other shows from Ohio I had the idea to do a spotlight on Elvis performing live in Ohio.
Of course it would be easy to just drop 20 or so download links and let people enjoy whatever they find there. I just thought that some added flavour with a couple of pictures and info on the events added could enhance the whole thing.
First I assembled a list of each and every show Elvis did in Ohio from the very beginning to the end. Then I checked my files for available audio, video, pictures and info on the venues.
While uploading everything I had found I prepared some collections of photos and assembled the info I had on the concerts (although more often than not reduced to a small extent).
Although there is unfortunately neither audio nor video available to any of his 50es shows I decided to include them nevertheless to give you an idea of what 'Elvis in Ohio' was like. Quite lengthy newspaper articles give great insight into McCarthy area USA and put Elvis into perspective with what living then was like.
To compensate for the lack of multimedia files I have added as much video as possible to the 70es concerts. Due to lack of time I just stick to what I already had available on my HDD (with the exception for Columbus '74) and did not rip my DVDs and do all the further editing necessary to deliver suitable results - I really hope you don't mind.
I hope you enjoy reading, listening and viewing 'Elvis in Ohio' as much as I did when compiling it.
Any comments on this are welcomed!

PS: Unfortunately the formatting of the text got a bit corrupted and I finally decided to stick with plain text - which means that at times you have a reaaaaaly long line to read. I am sorry for this inconvenience but I just couldn't go over all this text passages again.

A Hillbilly Jamboree on Saturday nights was emceed by the local radio station WERE disc jockey, Tommy Edwards.
Edwards's interest in country music as well as pop tunes involved him in the North Coast success of several early '50s artists. His radio show aired weekdays from 10:00 A.M. to 2:00 P.M. and succeeded in filling a void for country music lovers. He also began staging many of the early sock hops that took place in the area highs schools where he would also project slides onto a screen to accompany the music.(1)

According to Peter Guralnick, Tommy Edwards had been playing Elvis’ records on WERE since the fall of 54 and was an unqualified fan; there was a big market for this music in Cleveland, he assured (Bob) Neal. With all of the southerners who had flocked to town looking for work after the war, in addition to the large black population that occupied the Hough district and a diverse ethnic population, Cleveland was a real music town. The jamboree had unearthed so many hillbillies that Edwards had invited them to educate him as to what they wanted to hear. (2)

On Saturday, February 26, 1955 Elvis, Scotty and Bill made their first trip north to perform at the Circle. Bob Neal accompanied the boys in hopes that this might lead to even further exposure, that through the contacts he made at radio stations along the way, or just by being on the scene, something might happen. Other than that, he had no firm expectations — they didn’t even have a definite place to stay.(2)

They performed shows at 7:30 and 9:30 that had gone over fine. Elvis remained largely unheralded in Cleveland (his records were little more than "turntable hits" there, since Sun’s distribution did not extend effectively that far), but if Bob Neal had been apprehensive about a northern audiences receptivity to this new music, his fears were quickly put to rest. Elvis went over the same as he had throughout the South: the young people went wild, and the older folks covered their mouths. Bill's souvenir photo sales were brisk, as he mixed easily with the fans and made change from his money belt, and Tommy Edwards sold a fair number of their records (which they had carried up from Memphis in the trunk of Bob's car) in the lobby.(2)

After the show Edwards took them back to the radio station WERE to meet Bill Randle, a fellow deejay there who in addition to broadcasting five hours every weekday for WERE also hosted a Saturday-morning show for CBS in New York. It was through Tommy Edwards that Randle had first heard Elvis Presley’s music, but while Edwards played "Blue Moon of Kentucky" for his country audience, Randle heard something in the blues.(2) Randle was impressed with Elvis, and with Bob Neal. He gave Neal the name of a contact in song publishing who he thought could help get Elvis a tryout on Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts in New York.

The following October, Elvis, Scotty and Bill were back in Cleveland for another show at the Circle. This time Tommy booked them as an added attraction for shows on the 19th, a Wednesday night, the second night of an Opry Stars show headlined by Roy Acuff and Kitty Wells. There were shows at 7:30 and 10:00 p.m.

The following day, the 20th, Elvis, Scotty and Bill appeared and performed at the Brooklyn (Ohio) High School Auditorium on a bill that included Pat Boone, The Four Lads and Bill Haley and the Comets and then later that night at Saint Michael's Hall in Cleveland. Portions were filmed for a planned documentary about Cleveland DeeJay Bill Randle, called The Pied Piper of Cleveland. They would return once more as a band to Cleveland a little over a year later, in November of 1956 when they appeared at the Cleveland Arena, no longer an added attraction or an opening act.

October 20, 1955: Brooklyn Highschool - Elvis appears on stage and is filmed for the "Pied Piper of Cleveland"

Lost Video footage of Elvis (filmed for "The Pied Piper Of Cleveland - A Day In The Life Of A Famous Disc Jockey")
Cleveland, October 20, 1955, 1.30 pm, Brooklyn High School Auditorium:

That's all right
Blue Moon of Kentucky
Good Rockin' Tonight
Mystery Train
I forgot to remember to forget

The Franklin County Veterans Memorial Auditorium at 300 W. Broad St. (US 40) in Columbus, Ohio was officially dedicated on Veterans Day, November 11, 1955. The lush at the time, 3,916 seat auditorium is the largest in Columbus and was designed to host concerts, fund raisers, plays and such year round.

The following year, in 1956, Elvis, Scotty, Bill and DJ performed two shows there on their tour of the Midwest that May. Having performed the previous day in Detroit, this was their first appearance back in the state of Ohio since the previous October when they performed in and around Cleveland at the Circle Theater, the Brooklyn High School and St. Michaels Hall.

On May 25th, the day before the show, the Ohio State Journal wrote "There are many seats still available for both performances of the Elvis Presley show which will be presented at 7:00 p.m. and 10:00 p..m. this Saturday at the Veterans Memorial Building. Tickets may be obtained at Heaton's Music Store until 5:30 p.m. the day of the show.
After that the box office at the Vets Memorial will be opened.
In addition to singer Elvis Presley, the show will feature Jackie Little; the Smoky Mountain Boys; the Flaims; Frankie Connors and Phil Maraquin."
They evidently confused the name and referred to Scotty, Bill and DJ as the Smoky Mountain Boys instead of the Blue Moon Boys.

Dayton, University of Dayton Fieldhouse, May 27,1956 (2.00pm & 8.00pm)

On May 27, Elvis, Scotty, Bill and DJ performed two shows at the UD Fieldhouse in Dayton. It was the last stop on a tour of the Midwest that month that included stops in Minnesota, La Crosse, Wisconsin, Little Rock, Arkansas, Kansas, Nebraska and Detroit among others. The day before, they had performed in Columbus. The tour featured the same acts for most if not all of the shows which included The Flaim brothers and their orchestra, Irish tenor Frank Connors, comedian Phil Maraquin and the Jordanaires.

Advertisement for the show in the local papers commenced in the weeks prior and on the 18th the University's newspaper had a small article announcing the show and mistakingly referring to Frank Connors as the emcee.
An article in the Dayton Daily News on the day of the show announced that local deejays, Al Morris from WAVI and WING's Gene "By Golly" Barry would each emcee one of the shows. The shows were scheduled for 2:00 and 8:00 leaving the option open to add a third if ticket sales warranted, as the UD article mentioned, but apparently it didn't.
In fact neither show was filled to capacity.

University of Dayton Fieldhouse, May 27, 1956 - afternoon show

At the time, Dayton had two daily news papers, the Journal Herald, considered the "conservative" morning paper, and the "liberal" Dayton Daily News with a larger circulation in the newspaper. Each reviewed the show but neither were all too favorable.

Gee Mitchell of the Daily News wrote, They waited for Elvis Presley at U.D. Fieldhouse Sunday afternoon. Waited for almost two hours. Then, when he finally appeared, they screamed and shrieked all the way through his 30-minute performance so its doubtful if anyone heard more than a couple of words from him, sung or spoken. Then they waited some more, more than an hour after the show to get a glimpse of this Tennessee fugitive from a barber shop who is currently the hottest property in show business. Why? To hear him sing? If so, why did they drown him out with screams? To hear him play guitar? Couldn't be, he admits he just uses it for "sump'n to hang on to." Or maybe to watch his contortions while he goes through his routine? Let's ask one of the 3000 (promoter’s count) mostly teenagers who squealed their adulation.
"How about you miss? What's this guy have that sends you?" "O-o-o-o-oh" Let's try another.
"M-m-m-m-mmm" This gets us nowhere. Let's ask the guy himself. "Ah cain't answer that, An' anyhow, what difference it make? Long as they come see me. Ah love every one of 'em."
And to prove it he soundly bussed an inquiring high school reporter (female of course) and playfully mussed her hair. (One long shudder from the h. s. reporter.) Well, about those antics and gyrations ...?
"Ah jus' feel that way when Ah sing. Don't know why some people think it ain't decent." (At two stops on his year-and-a-half tour he was told to "tone down" his body movements.)
HOW DID THAT screen test turn out? Do you think you'll make the movies?
"Sure hope so, that's what Ah wanta be, an actor. Like James Dean. Wanta be in a picture like Rebel Without A Cause. This's too tough makin a livin' this way. Movies you don't work alla time, An' make big money. That's for me. Travelin' alla time Ah don't get no sleep. Ah'm tard."
Som' I. S'Long, Elvis.

University of Dayton Fieldhouse, May 27, 1956 - relaxing between the two shows

Jim O'Connor of the Journal Herald wrote, A rather better than average variety show was presented at the Dayton fieldhouse yesterday. Elvis Presley, who allegedly sings, also appeared. His 20 minute appearance was devoted to an obscene display of bumps and grinds, punctuated by occasional moos, bayings, wails and bellows from the public address system. The singing, if any, was almost completely smothered by a shrieking section which went off with the regularity of a cuckoo clock. Most of the scattered adults were in a state of semi-consciousness after the first bump and grind. A number were observed wiping tears of pure laughter from their eyes. The star received his comeupance at the afternoon show when he slithered off stage to await an avalanche of applause. His small band stayed expectantly in their places. However, a number of persons in the rear of the fieldhouse, in obvious need of air, staggered to their feet and headed for the door.
Everybody else, to the astonishment of the band and it is presumed also of Presley, went home.
Presley, who reportedly owns two Cadillacs and a sports car, arrived at 3:40 p.m. for a 2 p.m. show without a word of explanation.7 (A 3:40 start for his segment of a 2:00 show was not all that late. However, it was late enough apparently for DJ to not have time to set up his drums and instead used the set belonging to the drummer of the Flaim's Orchestra for the first show.)His arrival was announced by a press agent's appearance with a shoe which was bestowed upon the shrieking section. The star eventually appeared, sneaking on the stage with sidelong look of a man expecting to be served a summons. The shrieks washed up and down the walls of the fieldhouse like heavy seas on a rock shore. Grasping the microphone by the end and leaning it far over, he launched into what may have been almost anything. The audience, about 80 per cent girls aged 10 to 20, took it from there. Prior to Presley's arrival the 1,800 persons present were treated to some legitimate entertainment by among others, the Jordanaires. Polly Thomas, a staff writer for the Journal Herald, attended the show with her daughter and wrote about it in a column days after. She wrote,Take the "bull by the horns." That's the least any mother can do. For almost 14 years, our younger daughter, Toni, has been normal, healthy and periodically on the honor roll at school. She isn't particularly musical, although she's studying classical music. She was a ballet and toe-dancing student until recent years, but has no special affinity for dancing. Toni is an average teen-ager in an average family. Much like any child of that age, she has been devoted to nothing through the years, other than school, church and family. All of a sudden, she began shirking her household duties. She couldn't dry the dishes. Couldn't keep her room neat. She became preoccupied and dreamy. Toni had become an Elvis Presley fan.
Every waking moment was spent playing his records. Schedules were watched closely for his appearance on TV. She sent for his picture. Clipped every little press notice from newspapers and magazines. She waited, along with other normal, healthy teenagers at the record shop when a new Presley release was due to come in.
We talked it over.

University of Dayton Fieldhouse, May 27, 1956 - relaxing between the two shows

Should we put out foot down? Yes, that was it. That was the only thing to do. We let her play the records only once a day, and made available many of the classics that made easy listening. It didn't work. Presley's fame was
fast becoming a nation-wide subject. We realized that Toni's enthusiasm wasn't isolated. We were "squares." She was merely one of thousands upon thousands of fans. But why?

Strange Spell

Even after taking our daughter to see his show, even after she met him personally, neither we nor Toni nor Presley, himself, know just what kind of spell he casts.
Coming in to the UD field house Sunday afternoon, our daughter wondered why some cars could posibbly be going in the opposite direction! She weathered restlessly the first half of the show (although it was far above average) along with 2,000 other fans.
Presley was late. They fidgeted.
When he finally arrived at the side entrance in his Cadillac caravan, some 50 of the audience left their seats and watched him through a grating. Their hysterical squeals touched off the rest of the pack.
Ropes went up around the stage. Policemen were stationed every few feet, holding the ropes taut.

Leap To Stage

One expected to see the grand entrance of a six foot tall master of moods and music. It was hard to realize that the young man who mounted the stage in one graceful leap--that youngster clad in navy blue trousers, blue shirt and bright green sport coat--was the cause of so much pandemonium.
Piercing screams silenced as he wove about in front of the microphone. He went into "Heartbreak Hotel" (top seller on the hit parade for several weeks) and his followers went into a state of shock!

He took them ecstatically through all conceivable contortions of voice and body. Beyond all precedence, he worked tirelessly, as though he were offering himself to some strange medium, understood only by those who feel beyond all feeling.

The obvious gyrations, to the unartistic eye (most of all, mine) may have appeared ribald. But in all fairness, I must admit that there is an explanatory background that lifts them into the field of art.

Elvis was born in Tupelo, Miss., and spent his childhood in the deep south. As a child he heard the plaintive chants and blues, and saw potential shoeshine boys "jig" until they were exhausted. He captured the best of the south and began to take part in amateur productions. Performing was as natural as breathing. When the family moved to Memphis, he became professional. That primitive almost savage expression may be, in itself, a part of the hypnotic fascination. Then, too, the young southerner with straight, slicked-back hair and long sideburns, is dedicated to his audience. He sets his course and steers it straight, completely oblivious and uninhibited.

Contrasting Reactions.

Those seeing him for the first time were, frankly, bored and somewhat embarrassed. The "leg roll" and the exaggerated "shimmy," are, to some, quite awesome.

Toni and the others, in all innocence, screeched, "Isn't he WONDERFUL?"
Mother didn't answer.
Backstage, things took an about face. We found Presley easy to meet. He told us about his mother and dad, and that he was headed for Memphis to visit them. Toni's reaction to Presley, the boy, was probably the same as that of any other teen-ager he sees after the show. She was calm and collected and chatted freely as she would with any youngster. I drew a sigh of relief. It was not entirely a Pied Piper story.

However, on the way home, it was mentioned that the singer was immaculate and the fragrance of bathing and shaving was still on him. "I wouldn't know," Toni sighed. "I wasn't breathing!"

The following day Elvis, along with Marvin Israel and Edwin Miller in tow, flew to Memphis where they continued their assignment for Seventeen. The band drove. After a few days rest they headed for California for several appearances and the Milton Berle show.

University of Dayton Fieldhouse, May 27, 1956 - evening show

Tracklist of the evening show:

Heartbreak Hotel
Good Rockin' Tonight
Don't be cruel
That's all right
I was the One
Blue Suede Shoes
Shake, rattle and roll
I love you because

On Thanksgiving Day, November 22nd, of 1956, Elvis, Scotty, Bill and DJ made their only (2) appearance(s) together in Toledo on the first stop of a 4 day tour that also included Cleveland and Troy, Ohio and then Louisville.

The review in the Toledo Blade the following day announced "Its A Screeching Reception for Elvis" and read:Elvis Aaron Presley, a young man whose talent has been variously described as immature, immoral and even downright impossible, waved his famous pelvis at 13,125 frenzied teen-agers and some less enthusiastic adults yesterday in two appearances at the Sports Arena.

The screaming youngsters frequently bordered on hysteria but generally were well behaved at both performances, holding their seats until the final seconds of his 30-minute stints when they surged uncontrollably to the stage in a solid mass. But by the time they got there, Elvis was gone.

Presley, who in the space of a year has soared from a $35 a week truck driver in Memphis, Tenn., to a singing sensation who can take home better than $16,000 for a one-day stand in Toledo, was seen here by more persons than watched Adlai E. Stevenson and Vice President Nixon combined. And their talks were free.

To hear Elvis, the teenagers scraped together anywhere from $2 to $2.50 for tickets and paid out countless more for EP hats, EP souvenir albums, EP photographs, EP popcorn and even EP binoculars.

Elvis performs on stage the Sports Arena of Toledo on Nov.22, 1956

His half-hour of rock and roll songs, which he accompanies with torso twistings described in the burlesque trade as “bumps and grinds,” followed two hours of hastily contrived vaudeville acts and a series of “warm ups” designed to put the kids in a proper emotional state to receive him.

They were told, by a glib master of ceremonies, how to scream, when to scream and where to scream. But he carefully neglected to tell them why. And that is the phenomenon of Elvis Presley.
The cut-off point of his popularity was obvious. The scattering of 10 and 11-year-olds in the audience couldn’t have cared less.

Their reactions ranged from utter indifference to occasional screams which, they could see by looking about, appeared to be the thing to do. They liked the magician on the program better.

It was their slightly older sisters whose emotions gave away in constant screaming that subsided only when Elvis paused between numbers, and then frequently found peace in quiet sobbing.

Elvis Presley boasts he has never had a music lesson, an educational void he clearly demonstrated when he performed. But it made no difference. The all but hysterical screams that accompanied his every number completely obliterated whatever sounds he was making vocally, or might have made on his standard prop — a huge guitar that he strums from time to time but never plays.

Presley appeared on stage after two hours of wholesome entertainment. He was immediately preceded by a quartet that suddenly whipped the tempo into the pulsating rock and roll rhythm that Elvis has made his specialty. The tension mounted until he appeared at the rear of the stage. Presley stumbled forward, looked about in an almost bewildered amazement and launched into his first number. It brought the house down. From the opening chord, nothing could be heard but a steady, high-pitched scream, pierced occasionally by pleas of “Over here, Elvis.”

Elvis performs on stage the Sports Arena of Toledo on Nov.22, 1956

“Friends,” Elvis groans, “theah have been some requests fo ...” he pauses to stroke his trademarked side-burns “... fo a recohd of mine ...” again he pauses, as if to remember the name “ ... ‘Don’t Be Cruel.’”

Again the deafening scream erased the song. The noise rose to a higher pitch each time Presley writhed his torso in rhythm with the beat, or stumbled across the stage in a relaxation that bordered on utter collapse.

At the matinee, which was overwhelmingly teen-age in contrast to the somewhat more adult audience last night, Elvis closed out with his hit, “Houn’ Dog.”
It was the signal for the surge to the stage by thousands of youngsters who obediently had kept in their seats throughout the performance. They broke out and jammed down the aisles as an extra crew of 20 policemen watched helplessly.

Presley escaped through the rear of the arena to an auto that carried him to the Commodore Perry Hotel. Last night it carried him to the only violence of his stay here.

Seated in the Shalimar Room, with his press agent and three musicians, he was accosted by Louis John Balint, 19, of 517 South St. Clair St., who shouted “My wife carries your picture but doesn’t carry mine.”

The free-for-all that followed was broken up by police who found Presley pummeling his accuser who, meanwhile, was endeavoring to toss one of the musicians, Scotty Moore, over a railing that surrounds the Shalimar Room Terrace.

In Municipal Court this morning, Balint pleaded guilty to creating a disturbance and was sentenced to seven days in the Workhouse because of his inability to pay a fine of $10 and costs of $9.60.

Balint said he and his wife, Joann, were separated three weeks ago. She is living in Los Angeles.

Between shows in Toledo, November 22, 1956

The press agent the paper referred to was Oscar Davis, Parker's assistant, and it was Scotty, Bill and DJ that were there. According to Scotty, Balint drew back like he was going to throw a shot and I jumped on his back," says Scotty. “There was a railing there—one of those things they put besides steps—and he tried to roll me over his back onto the railing. He actually threw me over the railing. But by that time, Elvis was absolutely using him as a punching bag. He was real fast. Quick as lightning with his hands. He would have made a good fighter, but that would have messed up his face.

When the police arrived to break up the fight, six teenage girls who had been watching from the lobby rushed up and gave their names as witnesses. The police officers took the man off to jail and didn't file charges against Elvis. Contacted later by a newspaper reporter, one of the police officers said, "Presley's no slouch. He was really working that guy over." (1)

(1) excerpt from "That's Alright Elvis" by Scotty Moore and James Dickinson

Elvis' first movie, Love Me Tender, had been released on November 16, 1956. It set a record for Twentieth Century Fox as the largest release of a film ever at 550 prints. Love Me Tender, the song had gone to No. 1, with Don't Be Cruel/Hound Dog in the No. 2 slot. Love Me Tender also had another distinction: It was the first song Elvis recorded that didn't include Scotty, Bill or DJ. On November 23rd, three days before the end of a newspaper strike in Cleveland, they along with the Jordanaires performed three shows at the Cleveland Arena. There was literally no coverage by the press.

The strike proved fortuitous for a 17-year-old boy from Cleveland in attendance at the concert. Lew Allen, the photographer for his Heights high school newspaper, "The Black and Gold," and yearbook, was the only "professional" photographer at the show. He gained free reign access to the backstage area and the shows and captured a collection of stunning photos.

Lew shot a total of 27 photos, of which his school newspaper only published one. For years the remainder went unpublished and unseen. The newspaper strike ended three days later on the 26th.

After playing dates in Toledo and Cleveland just prior, this would be the last appearance in the State of Ohio until November 1971. The shows, in addition to Elvis' records were heavily advertised in the local paper days before with at least one store, "Standard TV," on N. Dixie Highway promoting record sales with a free ticket to the first six customers that purchased two records on the day of the show and, to a limited supply, an autographed photo with each purchase.

“Whenever I go by the Hobart Arena I think of that afternoon and whoever is with me has to hear the story of when I got to see Elvis in person there,” Bonny Riddle Valencia said. “I was 15-years-old and went to Tecumseh High School. I had never been to a concert before and my parents were not too thrilled with Elvis, but I was such a fan and begged and pleaded until they agreed to let me go. I remember being in about the 10th row and jumping and screaming with all of the other girls when he finally came on stage. I can’t really remember what he sang, but the performance was everything I had hoped it would be.”

“There was a young lady there with no shoes or socks on — all she had was her painted toenails,” former Troy Mayor Pete Jenkins said. “And it was very cold out. But she didn’t care, because the ‘King’ was in Troy.”

“It was very crowded — but my mom only had to pay $5 or $10 for the tickets, which is pretty hard to believe,” Troy resident Sherrie Davis said. “I got the tickets as a birthday gift from my mom and dad. I went with my aunt and my two sisters. I still have a scarf I bought at the show. I was a very big fan — and I still am. I’ve loved him all the way.”

The Troy appearances drew crowds from at least as far as neighboring Indiana. Contrary to Sherry's recollection, to promote a quick sale, the ads specified that the first 10,000 tickets sold would sell for $2.00 each and then for $2.50 after that. The combined attendance for both shows though was said to be 9153.

“It was great. I sat down on the floor,” Joan Lambert said. “It was just fantastic.”

Alice (Bowers) Daugherty was in the car on her way to the concert with her sister, Connie (Bowers) Ritter, when a very distinct-looking car pulled up alongside her. “We were going up Main St. and had stopped at a stop light in front of Murphy’s Dimestore,” Daugherty said. “We looked over and saw this big, pink Cadillac with a bunch of teddy bears in back. We knew it had to be him. “Anyway, the car pulled into Houser’s Garage. My sister and I probably could have pulled right in there and got his autograph. I said, ‘Let’s stop.’ But my sister said, ‘Don’t — I’m going to vomit.’ She was that nervous. And to this day, we’ve said it was one of the stupidest things we’ve ever done, not stopping.”

Elvis live in Troy, November 24, 1956

Brian Petersen, in "The Atomic Powered Singer, wrote that while in Troy, Elvis kept an old date with 13-year-old Priscilla Myers.The date should have taken place in Columbus, OH the previous May but it had been postponed due to Elvis' tight schedule at the time. Priscilla and her mother, Lucille, waited behind the stage in Elvis' dressing room, where they could hear thousands of fans scream "We want Elvis." Then the door flew open and Elvis, clad in a grey plaid sports jacket, came in. "Elvis," someone started, "this is..." "I know. You are Priscilla, it's good to see you." He said hello to Mrs. Myers and sat down with Priscilla and began chatting as though with a friend of many years. This was the start of what became a 45-minute conversation between Elvis and Priscilla during which they talked about music, Elvis' first movie and other things.
It was 4:30 p.m. when Elvis finally bounced onto the stage to the accompaniment of a shrill screaming. The walls of the Hobart Arena were miraculously still standing upright when the first words of "Heartbreak Hotel" set off another wave of pandemonium.

When Elvis returned to the stage in 1969 it was clear that he would soon also return to touring.
His first tour since 1957 was in September 1970 after he had tightend his program in three previous Las Vegas engagements and had also tested it during 6 shows at the Houston Astrodome.
After the success of this tour he would do an equally successful second tour in November of 1970.
Then it was back to Las Vegas for two engagements and one in Lake Tahoe.
In November 1971 Elvis returned to touring the country after a years break and one of the first stops on his tour was Cleveland.
The city was granted two shows on November 6 - one in the afternoon and one in the evening.
Both shows were recorded by a member of the audience with a home tape recorder.
Although it's good to have theses shows available today the taping machine used for the recordings and the circumstances involved in achieving these recordings were less then ideal.
What survives today gives an idea of what was going on during these hot shows but is hardly suitable for enjoyment of Elvis' raw power and entertaining skills.

NOTE: My CD-R copy had loads of digital glitches and errors - which I just found out when preparing this upload. Hence I had to do some additional editing to cut away really long and annoying blocks of digital noise or silence.
I will try and see if I can get a better copy but can not promise anything to you guys. Despite the limitations of my copy the show has an awful lots of cuts and is far from being a complete recording. So don't expect too much of an improvement.

Five days after the two Cleveland shows Elvis was back again in Ohio for one of the best shows of this tour.
On November 11 he performed in really good mood in front of roughly 13000 people at Cincinnati Gardens, dressed in his Black Fireworks Suit.
We are lucky that this show was not only taped by a member of the audience on a portable tape dec recorder.
We are also treated with really brilliant footage of that show - some have even argued that this might be footage taken by a local TV station and that it might exist in even better quality.
For now just enjoy what's there!

Roughly have a year later Elvis was back on tour. After he had finished another Vegas season in January/February he had recorded seven new songs at RCA Studios in Hollywood and afterwards went straight into a two day rehearsal for the upcoming April tour.
The tour was about to be captured on film by MGM for a planned documentary to be called "Standing Room Only" which eventually was later released as "Elvis on tour".
During this 15-city-19-concerts tour from April 5 to April 19 Elvis made a stop in Dayton, Ohio for one show.
Although no official record was done during that show we are still able to listen to it thanks to a member of the audience who taped it with his private recorder.
Far from being the best sounding audience recording you will ever hear it is quite decent for such a recording at that time and under the circumstances involved.

April 7, 1972 (8:30 pm), Dayton, OH., University of Dayton

2001 Theme
C.C.Rider
Proud Mary
Never Been To Spain
You Gave Me A Mountain
Until It's Time For You To Go
Polk Salad Annie
Love Me
All Shook Up
Teddy Bear - Don't Be Cruel
Heartbreak Hotel
Hound Dog
How Great Thou Art
I Can't Stop Loving You
Love Me Tender
Bridge Over Troubled Water
Suspicious Minds
Band Introductions
For The Good Times
An American Trilogy
A Big Hunk Of Love
Can't Help Falling In Love
Closing Vamp

It took more than a year until Elvis was back in Ohio. Cincinnati Gardens was the venue of the show on the 27th with a rare-for-the-period version of Something.
About six months earlier Elvis had the penultimate highlight in his career when he performed in Honolulu for a world wide telecast TV special.
The suit that was especiialy designed for that event - the "Aloha bald headed eagle" suit - was worn by Elvis for this Cincinnati show. This indicated well how much he cared for his fans in Ohio.
A fairly good sounding audience recording gives a good impression of a strong and entertaining show.

Another year had passed until Elvis in 1974 returned to Ohio for a final stint in Cleveland.
Wearing his beautiful Peacock Suit he thrilled the audience with tunes like "Bridge over troubled Water" and "You don't have to say you love me".
Unfortunately no audience recording of this show has surfaced until today but a still unreleased soundboard recording is waiting to be released and will hopefully see the light of day on a future FTD project or an import release.
What we do have though is a beautiful 8mm movie filmed by somebody in the audience that evening. Although just silent footage is great to see and you can easily recognize what Elvis is singing.

June 21 1974 (8:30 pm), Cleveland, OH., Convention Center

A local newspaper review lists these songs as being performed during the show - apart from these songs the lineup of material performed that night was probably not too much different of what Elvis was doing during the rest of the well documented tour.

Hound Dog
You Don't Have To Say You Love Me
Help Me
Fever
Why Me, Lord?
Bridge Over Troubled Water
Suspicious Minds
Can't Help Falling In Love

During the same June/July tour in 1974 Elvis paid a visit to Columbus for one show.
Unfortunately, the audience recording available from that evening ranks amongst the worst that were done during Elvis shows. Still here it is for completenes sake. Let's just hope that the soundboard recording from this concert will surface one day.
To compensate for that there is some added footage from that show. It is taken from the collectors video "Return to Splendour". Running obviously too fast the video is presented without original sound but with some added narrative from someone of the British Elvis fan club who was behind this project.

June 25, 1974 (8:30 pm), Columbus, OH. St. Johns Arena

2001 Theme
C.C.Rider
I Got A Woman - Amen
Love Me
Tryin' To Get To You
All Shook Up
Love Me Tender
Hound Dog
Fever
Polk Salad Annie
Why Me, Lord?
Suspicious Minds
Band Introductions
I Can't Stop Loving You
Help Me
An American Trilogy
Let Me Be There
Funny How Time Slips Away
Big Boss Man
Can't Help Falling In Love
Closing Vamp